In recognition of their feat at the 2018 Technovation World Challenge, the Governor of Anambra State, Chief Willie Obiano has reportedly offered scholarships and cash prizes of N1 million each to the 5 young girls who won the Junior Gold medal at the challenge in Silicon Valley, San Francisco, USA.

The team of 5 girls Codenamed “Save A Soul” from Regina Pacis Model Secondary School Onitsha, Anambra State include Promise Nnalue, Jessica Osita, Nwabuaku Ossai, Adaeze Onuigbo, and Vivian Okoye, with their team teacher Mrs Uchenna Onwuamaegbu-Ugwu. They won the challenge by developing the “FD-Detector”, an app to help fight fake drugs by scanning the barcode on drugs.

Governor Obiano presents cheques of N1 million each to six winners of World Robotics, Technovation champions https://t.co/GUA711i59kvia @todayngpic.twitter.com/Zm9KgPdKJE

— Nigeria Newsdesk (@NigeriaNewsdesk) August 29, 2018

To applaud this Junior Nigerian team, these Golden Girls were accorded with a cash prize of N1m each, decorated with the Crest of Anambra State and issued a Certificate of Merit in recognition of the honour they had brought to the state and country as a whole.

Speaking at the formal reception in honour of the girls at the Governor’s Lodge in Amawbia, the Governor declared in the presence of the girls’ parents that the Government of Anambra State had taken over the responsibility of their education up to the Bachelor’s Degree level.

These young ladies in Junior Secondary School, developed a mobile application called ‘FD Detector’ to tackle the problems of fake pharmaceutical products in Nigeria.

Yesterday, they won the 2018 Technovation World Pitch in California.

Congratulations! We are very proud of you. pic.twitter.com/SFFVvP88JB

— Prof Yemi Osinbajo (@ProfOsinbajo) August 10, 2018

Governor Obiano further describes them as, “A group of amazing girls who recently dazzled the world with their talent, they have, therefore, turned this special day into Gold. They did it with their outstanding brilliance, their quest for knowledge and their search for a happier world. And I am immensely proud of them.”

Also speaking, the mentor and coach of the girls, Uche Onwuamaegbu-Ugwu declared that she was not content with winning just once as winning for her is a vocation that needs to be repeated.

She said:

When we repeat this feat next year and two years from now, that is winning for me. We cannot win just once. But we need a lot of support to keep winning.

To win the first place in this technological contest, however, Save A Soul had to compete with students from over 115 countries, which includes Spain, the USA, Turkey, Uzbekistan, and China. And with over 2,000 apps submitted for the competition, this win was no easy one.

With the effectiveness of this app, the team has further plans for the FD-Detector. In the long run, they aim to partner the National Agency for Food & Drug Administration and Control (NDLEA) to ensure the app goes mainstream.

About the Technovation Challenge

121 girls from over 50 countries on stage for @technovation World Pitch 2018 pic.twitter.com/d9IxJ8lsxz

— Anar Simpson (@AnarSimpson) August 10, 2018

The Technovation Challenge is organized by Iridescent, a global non-profit organization that empowers underrepresented young people. Largely focused on the girl-child, Iridescent empowers young people through engineering and technology. Held in two categories – the Senior Division and the Junior Division.

The Challenge is held yearly for girls aged 10 to 18. And it tasks them on developing innovative solutions to practical problems. They learn how to communicate their ideas and turn them into viable businesses.